It All Starts with a Helping Hand: Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief

We all have seen the tragedy that hastaken place on the gulf coast of the USAcaused by Hurricane Katrina. The picturesthat we are seeing are horrifying, tragic,and overwhelming. It truly makes one thinkhow precious life truly is. As stated by theWhite House, over 90 000 SQUARE MILESis affected by this disaster! In response tothis disaster, all charitable organizationsare organizing the largest mobilization ofresources for one single US naturaldisaster in the history of the US. As we sit in our home that is not threatened,enjoy our meals with our families and beable to tuck our children into their safe bedat night, we need to stop and think of thosehundreds of thousands of people that are notable to do this and may not be able to formonths to come. These people can not evenget access to the basic necessities in orderto survive. This true desperation we areseeing, is what will spur us into action tohelp those that are in need. How can we seethese pictures, stories and videos of ourfellow citizens suffering and not take action?With the onslaught of this natural disasterleft in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, wemust realize this is also a time for dishonestpeople who pray on these charitable feelingsof those wanting to help. We all need to helpin one way or another BUT please safeguardhow you help and make sure your hard earneddollars are put in the right hands to helpthe people that are in need.Just in the last few days, we are seeing manypeople "saying" they are collecting donationsand will forward it on to the appropriatecharities. We are seeing people making callssaying they are collecting on behalf of TheRed Cross, and other charities. We are seeingPeople knocking on doors asking for donations.Because we feel the pain of the citizens of theseaffected cities, we want to help and we dig deepto do so. But we take for granted that thesecalls we are receiving are from the said charities.We take for granted that the emails we receiveare honest and true. We take for granted that allpeople want to help and we forget thatdisasters like this also bring out the dishonestpeople as well.There are many things you can do to protect yourdonation and ensure it goes to the right place.Here are a few things to look for when donating:1) Charitable organizations like the Red Cross,Salvation Army do not email, knock on doorsOR phone people for donations. If you havereceived a phone call, a knock on your door oran email solicitation for a charitable organizationfor this disaster relief, the chances are it isnot reputable.2) If you receive a phone call, get informationon the charity. Ask for their 1-800 number formaking donations or the website. NEVER giveyour personal information on the phone whenyou have received a phone call soliciting a donation.3) If you receive an email regarding any disaster,never open attached files, which often pose asphotos of the disaster but could actually be wormsor spyware that will infect your computer. Neverrespond to the email with personal informationsuch as Name, credit card information etc.4) Do not donate cash. Always write a personalCheck and write it to the Charitable organizationand not to the person collecting on their behalf.5) Get a receipt for your donation that has thecharities name on it. This can be used for aTax deduction.6) If you receive a request to purchase a productand some of the proceeds will go to certaincharity, you need to think if you wish to supportthis company or not. Many of these companies arewanting to help the disaster relief, but how willyou know that the money collected will actuallygo to the charities or to the ones in need? Isthe company respected, is there a member of thecompany affected by the disaster? Can you confirmthis? Does the company have a good standing withtheir customers? Are they a long-term company?Confirm and research what you can before youchoose to make a donation. TO make a donation,you are not required to purchase a product.If you want to give, go directly to the Charityitself and donate. If you know that the companyis true and is working to help their fellowemployees and such, then support them!6) Research any donation you want to make andmake sure the company and/or chartable organizationyou are donating or purchasing from are legit andnot just filling their pockets.If you think you may have been the victim of a scamcharity, call or log onto the FTC Web site atwww.ftc.gov or contact your local Better BusinessBureau or police department.The United States Federal Emergency ManagementAgency (FEMA) has compiled a list of reputablevoluntary organizations that urgently need cashdonations to assist victims of Hurricane Katrinain Gulf Coast states.

http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease_print.fema?id=18473Below are other websites with key informationon Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief and Recovery:Hurricane Katrina Official Government Website

http://www.firstgov.gov/Citizen/Topics/PublicSafety/Hurricane_Katrina_Recovery.shtmlNational Next of Kin Registry

http://www.nokr.org/Alabama Hospital Association (patient locator)

http://www.alaha.org/hurricane.htmlFind Hurricane SurvivorsRead & post messages to loved oneshttp://www.sunherald.com/

This is not written to deter you from donating.The private donations that are made WILL helpand are DESPERATELY needed. Even if you canonly donate $1! It is $1 more towards the targetdonations that is needed to help provide food,water, shelter and medical attention to thoseaffected by this disaster. The scopeof this disaster is enormous. We all need tohelp in one way or another.By making a donation today you are helpingthose in need. If we all do our partto help our fellow man, the suffering will endsooner, the smiles will return to their facesand the rebuilding of their lives can begin.It all starts with a helping hand.